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New Faces: Annabella Sciorra and Ron Eldard; The Actors Who Gave Life To the Couple in 'True Love'

By ANDREW L. YARROW

Published: December 29, 1989

There may not be a happy-ever-after ending to ''True Love,'' but the film about the emotional twists and turns leading up to an Italian-American wedding in the Bronx has certainly had a happy outcome for Annabella Sciorra and Ron Eldard. The movie, in which they make their feature-film debuts, has earned both actors favorable reviews for their portrayal of a young couple who must contend with the often ludicrous details of planning a wedding as well as a post-nuptial future for which neither is quite ready.

''The story is definitely specific in time and place to the Bronx, but I see this sort of thing happen all the time,'' said Mr. Eldard, who plays Michael, the film's swaggering, confused but basically decent hero. ''Young guys who don't know what they're doing get married because that's what they think they're supposed to do. And then the wedding takes on a life of its own.''

Ms. Sciorra, who plays Donna, Michael's alternately passive and tough fiancee, agreed that until the movie's conclusion neither character realizes he or she has any choice but to marry. ''In the course of the film, Donna learns about herself and finally has the courage to say, 'This is not what I want,' '' she said. ''By the last scene, I feel I'm watching two characters who don't really know each other but are the closest they've ever been.'' Beyond the Stereotypes

The movie - which was directed by Nancy Savoca and written by Ms. Savoca and her husband, Richard Guay - also provides a finely drawn yet humorous snapshot of family life and of male and female friendships in a working-class, Italian-American neighborhood.

''I've always been disturbed at how Italian-Americans are usually portrayed in movies, but Nancy and Rich made it clear they weren't looking for stereotypes,'' Mr. Eldard said. ''Half my family is Sicilian, and where I lived in Queens, in Ridgewood, is very Italian.''

After many forays to the bars, delis and streets of the north Bronx to prepare for ''True Love,'' Mr. Eldard said he discovered differences between the Italian-American communities in the two boroughs. ''In my area, you see a lot of stereotypic Guido guys, with their hair slicked back,'' he said. ''Up there, it's not as slick. There's a grittiness to the Bronx, while Queens is more gaudy.''

Both actors thought that ''True Love'' is told more from ''a woman's point of view,'' Mr. Eldard said. But they also described the movie and its characters as evolving on the set. ''Nancy was less interested in how the story ended than with how the two people got to the end,'' Mr. Eldard said. ''Annabella made Donna more on the ball than she was in the script, and I was given free rein in developing Michael. We had to work hard to make him likable, even though he does stupid, insensitive things.'' A 10-Year Project

Ms. Sciorra, a dark-haired native New Yorker who began acting at HB Studios at age 13, joined the ''True Love'' team nearly three years before production began in June 1988. Although the movie was conceived a decade ago, its producers were able to raise enough money to begin filming only after Ms. Savoca made a nine-minute promotional movie with Ms. Sciorra. ''We became friends over the years and hung around the Bronx a lot,'' she said. ''We'd auditioned a lot of Michaels when Ron came on just a few weeks before filming began.''

Ms. Sciorra previously appeared in a 1987 NBC mini-series, ''The Fortunate Pilgrim,'' but her acting career has taken off since she finished ''True Love.'' She has already worked in three high-profile feature films to be released in the next year or so. In ''Internal Affairs,'' a tale of corruption in the Los Angeles Police Department, she appears with Richard Gere, and she plays opposite Robin Williams and Tim Robbins in ''Cadillac Man,'' a story of love and jealousy in a Queens auto showroom. In the fall she finished work on ''Reversal of Fortune,'' a movie about the Claus von Bulow case starring Jeremy Irons and Glenn Close. Acting and Boxing

Like Ms. Sciorra, Mr. Eldard is in his mid-20's and was born in New York. He attended the High School of the Performing Arts, was an understudy in Neil Simon's ''Biloxi Blues'' on Broadway in 1986, and was working in a Queens deli when he was selected for ''True Love.'' He took the part, even though no one was being paid, because ''I related a lot to Michael,'' he said. ''When I was younger, I behaved with that confusion -going out with buddies and being afraid to commit. Michael could do romantic things, but he couldn't sustain it.''

Earlier this year, Mr. Eldard appeared Off Broadway in ''Tony 'n' Tina's Wedding,'' and he said he is close to firming up parts in another film and a television series. However, since taking up boxing a few years ago, the blond, athletically built actor is also intent on pursuing another ambition. ''I fought in the Golden Gloves last year and came in second, but I know I could win,'' he said. ''In boxing, if you're the best, you get the prize. That doesn't always happen in acting.''